Time is precious, and the start of a year is a good time to think about what’s important to you, what went well last year and what changes you want to make this coming year, then you need a business plan.
Step 1 – Ask quality questions
The quality of our choices is determined by the quality of the questions we ask ourselves. Some quality questions to ask yourself include:
- Do I want more (or less) time with my family? If yes, how much and when?
- Am I happy with my current financial position? If not, quantify the changes you would like.
- Do I regularly feel stressed? If yes, what can I do about it?
- Am I satisfied with my current health, weight and lifestyle? If not, what needs to change?
- On a scale of 1-10 how much am I enjoying my life? If not a 10, what needs to change to get closer to a 10?
For business owners there are some additional questions to ask, including:
- Why are we in business? Why do our customers buy from us?
- What do I want the business to look like in 5 years time? Be as specific as possible.
- What went well last year and how can we build on that this coming year?
- What frustrations did we encounter last year, and how can we minimise those this year?
- What are the 3-4 key things we must achieve in the next 12 months?
Your answers to 1-5 above will guide you towards making a life plan and the answers to 6-10 form the basis of your 2018 business plan.
Step 2 – Set a plan and get a coach
The problem is these are hard questions to answer and we often get stuck. Even if we can answer the questions our thinking is limited to what we know and our personal paradigm, often resulting in “more of the same”.
Having someone we trust and can be honest with to challenge and expand our thinking is often critical to setting the right goals and actions. Having that person then hold us accountable to achieving our stated objectives is equally important. Let’s face it, the planning is relatively easy, but the actual execution is tough.
Step 3 – Reality check
It is easy to set unrealistic or conflicting goals, or goals that you can achieve but are not really going to solve your frustrations or get you to where you want to be. Getting an independent coach at the outset can avoid a lot of missteps and wasted time and effort.
Running a marathon or losing 10kg looks and feels great on paper. But is the investment in those goals going to get you what you want? And even if they are, then those 5am week day runs in the rain or the hunger pains when you are desperate for carbohydrates will kick in. Without real determination and/or someone to hold us accountable, our resolve is likely to crumble and another year will go by without achieving what we said we would, leading to diminishing confidence and self-worth.
Step 4 – Take action
Don’t let your plan become a dream, make it a reality and change your 2018!
If you would like to discuss how Q2 Ltd can help you set a business plan and then hold you accountable for achieving it contact us here for a complimentary discussion.